Ship of Dreams
by dreamsindigital
Summary: Taichi meets a girl (::coughcough someone from his past) but she has a secret.. can he help her?
1. You're a Goddess

Title: Ship of Dreams- Part 1: You're a goddess 

Author: Trinity (yeppers, I"m back!!!!) 

Censor: PG-13 for language   
  
  
  
  
  


A/N - *gak* it's a..... Michi... and I'M writing one!!!!!!!! well, be kind as it is my first... ... er.... this is gonna be dedicated to Kate, (aka digitally obsessed) b/c she used her awful Dark Magic to possess me to write this ^^() -NEWAYS the title is from Vertical Horizon's "You're a God"   
  


Dedication: KATE-CHAN!!!! You are the awesomest, girl, now all of y'all, go read her schtuff!!! (Especially her TS series, it's da best!) do an author search for "digitally obsessed" Luv ya girl! now on w/ the ficcie:   
  


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" Look, I don't think that we're communicating as well as we used to. I mean, I love you, I really do, it's just..." her voice trailed off as she stared uncomfortably at her shoes. 

"Just what?" 

She looked up at him. His honey brown eyes betrayed his thoughts. He knew what was coming, he was just waiting for her to say it. 

"I don't think we're making the connection that I need right now." she paused, then continued, "Let's take a break for a while, okay?" 

He fought the need to run his silver eclipse off the road. Trying to be understanding, he said, "Okay, if... if that's what you want" 

"You can drop me off here." she said, her voice cold. 

He stopped the car in front of the mall. She climbed out and met his large amber eyes with her dark rimmed aqua ones. "Ja ne, Taichi-kun." 

"Ja ne, Kate-chan, you know I'll always be there for you." 

"Okay," she turned and left. 

He drove out of the parking lot, his wild brown hair flapping in the wind. "Damn it," he said, "Why did I ever get the convertible?" Then he 

remembered, it was to impress Kate. He thought about the first time they had kissed, in that car under the stars atop Odaiba's prettiest make out point. 

He sighed as he pulled over. (A/n- he's still in the parking lot) He got out of the car and began putting the top up when he heard someone crying. He ventured out into the darkness, trying to find the source of the sobbing. Then, he saw her. 

A girl, about his age, maybe a year younger, was sitting on the ground, her back leaned up against a car. Her head was in her hands, and her long light brown hair was hanging down, almost covering her whole face and hands. "Er.. can I help you, miss?" the ever caring Tai said. 

She looked up, her light auburn eyes flashing wildly, she pressed up against the car. She reached into her purse and pulled out a small can of pepper spray. "No, I'm fine." she said, almost mechanically, holding the pepper spray in front of Tai's face. 

"Relax, lady. I'm not going to hurt you. I just was wondering, why are you sitting in a mall parking lot crying?" Tai glanced at the pepper spray nervously. He needed his eyes for the soccer tournament the next day. 

The young woman stood up and brushed off her dark denim jeans and green tube top. "I have my reasons." she said, wiping her mascara streaked face with the back of her hand. "Well, mister, it's been real, but I have to go...er... meet someone now, Ja!" she said as she hopped into her car and drove off.. 

He shrugged and headed back to his car.   
  


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As he was driving home he kept thinking about the girl with the auburn eyes. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't keep his mind on the road. 

Beep.... Beep..... 

Someone was honking at him! He woke up from his trance and realized that he had just been driving in circles around the mall. It was now getting dark. He glanced at the clock. 

The bright green digits shone- 8:59. "Shit." Tai said, suddenly remembering about his trig mid-term that was happening the next day. 

He decided to make a last minute stop at Starbucks. He walked up to the counter and ordered. 

"I'll have a large café breve with an extra shot and a shot of chocolate, please." He flashed a smile at the girl behind the counter. 

She blushed slightly, then turned to make his drink. A few minutes later, she came back with his breve and rang up his order. 

Her dark bluish purple eyes sparkling, she gave him his total. After he had paid, she smiled and said, "Come back and see me... er... us soon!" 

He glanced around for a seat. To his surprise, he saw the girl with the auburn eyes sitting down with her nose in a fashion magazine and a bottled water beside her. 

He slowly walked over to the table she was sitting at and asked, "Excuse me, but is this seat taken?" He gave the girl a breathtakingly gorgeous smile. 

She glanced up at him, her large eyes dialated because of the low light, and motioned for him to sit. After a few seconds, she did a double take and realized who was sitting across from her. 

"What... what are you doing here?" she questioned, her brow furrowing into a frown. 

"Well nice to see you again, too!" he smiled, his brown eyes flickering. 

"Wha... Were you... did you follow me here?" She questioned, her ruddy eyes narrowing. 

"Of course not! Can't a guy get a decent cup of coffee in this town without being asked if he's a murderer or rapist?" he smiled at her again before opening his trig book and flipping pages. 

She relaxed and a small smile began tugging at the corners of her mouth. She stopped reading for a moment and glanced at her watch. 

She then resumed flipping through her magazine hurriedly. "Well, I'd better get home. Nice meeting you, er... what was your name?" she said standing up. 

"Taichi... but you can call me Tai" he replied with a wink. 

"And why is that?" she asked, smirking. 

"Er......" Tai flushed. He wanted to say, "Because I've been thinking about you all night and you're beautiful..." but, instead he just smiled and shrugged. 

"Okay, bye then!" she said as she flounced out of the café. Tai sighed and got back to his reading.   
  


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The next day, after his trig test, which he was sure he bombed, he was walking through the senior courtyard. 

He walked over to a large old tree and sat down, leaning against it. He closed his eyes and tried to sleep, but his thick brown hair kept falling out of place and brushing his cheek, tickling him. 

He decided to just doze, since he had to continually brush the hair out of his face. He tried to think about the upcoming soccer tournament, but his mind kept wandering to the girl. He realized that he hadn't gotten her name. 

"Damnit, Tai.... That sucks, you could've at least gotten her name!!" he said softly, giving himself a mental slap. 

"It's Mimi" 

"Wha???" Tai said, opening his eyes. She was standing over him. She was standing over him?! 

"YAAAHH!!" he yelled in surprise as he jumped up, brushing grass off of his jeans. 

"Well, you said you wanted to get my name last night. I'm sorry I left in such a hurry, but it was getting late, and my..... uh... my parents were probably worried." 

Mimi said looking down at her 3 inch brown leather platform shoes. "It's okay, but now I'm getting the feeling that you're the one following me!!" Tai said with a smile. 

Mimi laughed and said, "No, it's not that, I've been going here for about a week now, I transferred from another district. We just must not have any classes together. Or, well.... what grade are you in?" 

"I'm a senior, and you are?" 

"... a junior." 

"Then what are you doing in the senior courtyard??" Tai asked, quirking an eyebrow. 

"This is the senior courtyard???" she flushed crimson. "I didn't know.. I just saw you lying out here and thought I'd come out and talk. It's my study hall right now." 

"Oh, it's okay. No one'll ever know, I thought you were a senior..." 

She smiled and flushed harder, "Well, then let's just meet here during study hall." 

Tai smirked and said, "This coming from the girl who was holding a can of MACE about 2 inches in front of my nose last night." 

"I'm really sorry about that, I didn't know..." 

"No prob, I'm just kiddin.." he flashed a smile. He looked her up and down quickly, just trying to catch what he had missed in the low light the previous evening. 

She was wearing a green tank top and a short dark greenish leopard print skirt. "...must like green.." he thought. "Well, she looks great in it." (A/N: I put that in for you Kate!) 

As she felt Tai's eyes look her up and down, she felt her eyes drifting over him as well. He was wearing a long-sleeved white t-shirt with a short sleeved black one over it that said "Channel 93.5- the new rock alternative" (A/N- that's the name of the radio station I listen to...) and a pair of dark denim baggy pants. 

"My god he's hot...." she thought...... "NO! I can't let myself get involved with anyone.... it might happen.. again....." Her eyes widened slightly at the realization and she looked around for an exit. 

She spotted one, and then glanced at her watch. "Well, looks like I gotta go or I'll be late for class..." she said, as she turned and left. 

"But... it's only been 45 minutes!! You have another 30 to get to class!!" he called after her, but it was too late. He leaned back against the tree and slowly slid down it, the rough bark scratching his back. 

"Is it me?" he thought. "Am I really that bad?" (A/N- NOOOO Taichi-kun!!! it's not your fault!!... gomen readers... keep on readin') He pulled out his chemistry book. He might as well use the free time to catch up on his schoolwork. 

His eyes scanned the page, but the words just weren't connecting with his brain. He kept thinking about... her. Mimi. 

He knew that name from somewhere, but he couldn't remember. He laid back on the grass and stared up at the bright blue sky dotted with pure white clouds. And then he heard, a giggle, and a voice. 

"Oh, Trowa-kun.. you're so much fun to be with!! Not like my ex. He was all about himself, never about me.. We always had to go where he wanted to go, and do what he wanted to do." 

"It's okay, Kate-chan, don't worry about Taichi anymore. You're with me, now. Everything is gonna be about you now. I promise." 

"Good, now hold me..." 

Taichi glanced up and looked around the tree with a confused face. There was Trowa, one of the guys on the soccer team, and Kate was lying with her head resting in his lap, her long black hair flared wildly around his legs. 

They were looking at each other like they had been in love for years. Then, Trowa leaned down and kissed her deeply. 

Taichi laid back down again and looked back to the sky, heat coming to his face. He felt tears come to his eyes, and sit on top of the lenses, blurring his vision slightly. 

"Oh, well, it was for the best, I suppose. She's happier now... God, do I miss her though. Trowa ought to be the happiest guy in the world right now, he's got the most beautiful girl in school wrapped up in his arms." He reminisced, "She used to be in mine, but I guess I wasn't enough for her. I didn't give her the love that she needed. Will I ever find someone that I can care about?" he wondered aloud.   
  


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When school got out, Tai headed towards his car. When he got there, he put the top down and turned his music up. He slowly pulled into the line of cars that had accumulated to get out of the school parking lot. 

"And now, the new one from Vertical Horizon!" the dj announced.   
  


~I've got to be honest 

I think you know 

We're covered in lies 

and that's OK 

There's somewhere beyond this 

I know 

But I hope I can find the words to say 

Never again 

no 

No never again   
  


'Cause you're a god 

And I am not 

And I just thought 

That you would know 

You're a god 

And I am not 

And I just thought 

I'd let you go   
  


But I've been unable 

To put you down 

I'm still learning things 

I ought to know by now 

It's under the table 

so I need something more 

to show somehow 

Never again 

no 

No never again 

'Cause you're a god 

And I am not 

And I just thought 

That you would know 

You're a god 

And I am not 

And I just thought 

I'd let you go   
  


I've got to be honest 

I think you know 

We're covered in lies 

and that's OK 

There's somewhere beyond this 

I know 

But I hope I can find the words to say 

Never again 

no 

No never again   
  


'Cause you're a god 

And I am not 

And I just thought 

That you would know 

You're a god 

And I am not 

And I just thought 

I'd let you go~   
  
  
  


Tai sighed and pulled out of the parking lot. As he was going around the corner, he spotted Mimi walking on the sidewalk. His mind flashed back to the song...... "You're a goddess" he thought. He pulled up to her and asked, "Need a ride?" 

"Uh... no, it's really not that far..." she replied. 

"C'mon, there's a lot of traffic, it could be a while before you get across this street." his amber brown eyes pleaded with her. 

"Uh.. okay" she said hesitantly, before throwing her bag in the back seat and hopping in. 

"So... where's your house?" Tai asked. 

" You can turn here...." she said, giving him directions. 

"You walk all this way after school?" 

"It's really not that far. Anyways, it's good excersise." 

They pulled onto a narrow road with shabby looking houses on either side. Noticing Tai's wrinkled nose, Mimi said, "You can drop me off at this corner, here." 

"Am I really that boring?" Tai said, a cockeyed smile on his face. 

Mimi noticed how handsome the almost pure white of his teeth shone against his nicely tanned skin. And his lips.... well, she could look at them forever, but, instead, she broke her stare and looked back up into his eyes. 

"No, it's just, I'd like to get my walking in for the day." "Did I say that??? That sounded so awful!!! 

Jeez, Mimi..." she was cut off from her mental diatribes. 

"Well, I'll see you in study hall tomorrow, then, okay?" Tai said, breaking her thoughts. 

"Sure, meet ya by the tree!" Mimi said. 

Tai almost instinctively leaned in for a kiss, but stopped when she opened the door and got out. She leaned over and grabbed her bag, then turned and left. 

"Bye!" Tai called after her. 

"Bye Tai!"   
  


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The next day they met during study hall at the tree in the courtyard. They talked for the whole period , and when it was time to go, each had more to say to the other. 

"Uh... Do'ya think that you could come over for dinner tonight, Mimi?" Tai asked. 

"Sure, but I don't know where your house is....." 

"You can just come home with me after school. Do'ya need to clear with your parents first?" Tai gazed at her with his large brown eyes. 

"Uh... yeah, I'll go call them after school, I'll meet you in the parking lot." Mimi said. 

"Okay then" 

"Bye." 

"Bye."   
  


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"Wow, Mrs. Kamiya, this is awesome!" Mimi said with a smile as she popped some more of her sukiyaki into her mouth. 

"Well, I can't take all of the credit, Hikari helped a lot. She's getting to be quite a cook!" Mrs. Kamiya replied. 

Kari got up quickly and said, "Well, it was nice seeing you again, Mimi. Sorry I can't stay longer, but I have a date with Dai. Bye!" A slight blush slowly crept up into her cheeks. 

"Bye Kari! Have fun!" Mimi said before returning to her food. 

"Don't stay out too late, Kari. Come back before 11:30, okay?" Tai said, a menacing tone in his voice. 

"After all of these years, he's still extremely protective of his little sister...... " Mimi thought. "Er..... Mrs. Kamiya, where's the bathroom? I need to..... uh.. 

Freshen up a bit...!" 

"Down the hall, to your left." Mrs Kamiya pointed. 

"Thanks!" Mimi said, grabbing her purse hastily as she headed in the direction Tai's mother had pointed. 

Mr. Kamiya leaned in towards Tai and said, "Wow, son, that's quite a girl you've got there!" He reached over and gave his son a strong pat on the back. 

"Huh? Oh, yeah, she is something, isn't she?" Tai said, breaking from his thoughts. 

"Son, your father and I are going out to see a movie. We won't be back until about 1." Tai's mother said warily. "I know I can trust you, Tai." She added, giving him the look that said " You'd better stay out of trouble, mister, or you know what's going to happen." 

"Sure thing, mom! Don't worry, Mims and I are just friends!" He smiled at her innocently.   
  


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Tai was sitting crosslegged on his bed, his head in his hands, when Mimi walked in. She looked at the bunk beds, and smiled. "You still sleep in here with your sister, huh?" Her eyes sparkled. 

"How did you know I shared a room with her in the first place?" Tai said, his eyes widening quizzically. "Kari said it was nice to see her again... Again?? She's never met her, has she?" 

"Who... who are you?" Tai's russet-brown eyes narrowed slightly. 

Mimi stared at the poster- covered wall briefly before slowly sinking down onto the bed. 

"Think hard about your past, Tai. When you were 11, a girl dressed all in pink that you knew very well left for America.... You never saw her again." 

"Mimi..... Mimi!! Oh my god, Mimi Tachikawa!" Tai said, his eyes widening in surprise. He threw his arms around her. "I don't believe it's you! Why didn't you tell me sooner???" 

She broke out of his comforting arms. "I wasn't sure... When I left, I thought that you hated me.... I wanted to start new.. I wanted you to like me..." Her eyes shined with tears. 

"Of course I like you! You're the best thing that's happened to me in a long time, Mims." He pulled her back into a hug, and this time she made no attempt to pull away. 

She looked up at him and wiped her uniquely beautiful auburn eyes. "Thanks, Tai. This is the first time that I've ever felt.... wanted. I want to 

stay like this forever." She smiled. 

"Me too, Mimi, me too." Tai's eyes shone with caring. His heart was pounding. He felt as if it was going to burst out of his chest. He stared at her, and gently brushed a small strand of hair that had fallen out of place. She placed her hand over his and timidly returned his stare. 

They got caught up in the moment and slowly leaned in until their lips touched briefly. For a split second, their worlds collided and all the pain Mimi had felt in her heart left her. 

All of the awful, haunting, recurring memories from the back of her mind left her. For that split second, she was in Tai's arms, and she knew that was where she was meant to be. 

But, as everything wonderful is, the kiss lasted only a split second. They pulled away, and looked at each other. Russet brown eyes looked into large auburn ones. 

"Oh God, I love you Mimi..." Tai breathed softly. He pulled her back to him hungrily, pressing his lips against hers hard. He kissed her passionately, soft at first, then harder, deeper. This kiss lasted longer than the first, and their souls were entertwined for a while.....   
  


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Mimi blinked her eyes open and stretched her cramped arms, when she did this, her hand brushed up against Tai's mop of wild brown hair. 

Startled, she pulled her arms back close to her quickly, not wanting to wake Tai. She was still wrapped up in his arms. 

After the kiss ended, they had confessed their love for each other and fell asleep together on Tai's bed. 

Nothing had happened, but Mimi felt as if she was floating above the clouds. She glanced down at Tai's sleeping figure and traced his darker colored cheek with a slender white finger. She sank back down in his arms with a smile on her face.   
  


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Tai awoke with a start to the sound of a door opening. He sat straight up in bed, realizing his parents were back from their movie. He looked over at Mimi, whose magnificent auburn eyes were shut, her lush, dark eyelashes lying heavily on her cheeks. Her long light brown hair, which was fanned out around her head like a halo on the pillow, shimmered in the moonlight. He nudged her awake softly. 

"Mimi, my parents are home... If they see us like this..." his voice was thick with worry. 

Her eyes flew open with realization. She got up quickly, and ran over to her purse. She picked it up hastily, and then dodged over to the window. She opened it slowly, struggling with the weight. 

Tai walked over to her and easily pushed it open for her. She pecked him quickly on the lips and then she was gone. 

Tai sat down on the bed slowly. He was in a daze. Had the girl he had been in love with since the minute he had seen her just fallen asleep in his arms? He laid on his back with a sigh, and put his hands beneath his head. He quickly fell asleep, and his dreams were filled with Mimi.   
  


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The next morning, his alarm clock rang and he groggily pulled himself to a sitting position on his bed. When his large bare feet touched the cold hardwood floor, he winced, but headed towards the shower quickly. 

When he got out, he wrapped a towel around his midriff and walked back into his room to get dressed. 

Kari was already ready, she always was on time. He pulled his shirt up off the floor, shaking it. He pulled it up over his head and strong chest. As he did, a small pill bottle fell to the floor and bounced a few times before rolling away. 

"It must've fallen out of Mimi's purse when she left..... I wonder what it is?" Tai thought. He followed it, stopped it with his foot, and then picked it up. 

Turning it over in his hands, he peered at it, trying to read the fine print. His eyes widened with shock and horror. "What the hell?"   
  


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A/N: WOW! That had to have been my best writing so far, if I must say so myself heehee. So... What exactly ARE those pills, huh??? Well, they're..... ::an airplane flies overhead as Trinity tells you what the pills are, but you can only see her mouth moving:: haha!! (heehee, sorry i had to steal that from ya, Kate.. but it wuz just sooo good!) Anywayz, hoped ya liked it, and as always, my email is Taichigrl@hotmail.com 

my site is http://welcome.to/everythingkamiya 

Luv y'all! 

Trinity   
  



	2. With Arms Wide Open

Title: Ship of Dreams- part 2: With Arms Wide Open 

Genre: Romance (Mimi/Tai) 

Censor: PG-13 for language 

Author: Trinity 

Email: Taichigrl@hotmail.com 

Site: http://welcome.to/everythingkamiya 

Dedication: The Queen of Takari, Lys, da most awesome poetry writer! I luv ya grl! (Her author name is ~Lys~ now GO pikapooch, and read her schtuff!!!!) 

(A/N: I got the title from the Creed song- With Arms wide open ^^ 

I hopie u likey the ficcie!! ja ne, Trin)   
  


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He stared at the pills, scowling. What would she be doing with these? Could she be......? He decided to check it out in science class. 

"Tai, you're gonna be late for school!!!" Mrs. Kamiya yelled. Tai shoved the bottle in his pocket and left for school.   
  


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"Ask her.............. " Tai told himself. He was driving her home, like he did every day. 

"Bye Tai!" Mimi said as she hopped out of the car and crossed the street. 

"Bye Mims!" he called after her. Tai put his right hand around the seat next to him and looked behind him so he could back up. 

He saw that Mimi had left her book bag in the backseat. He looked around for her, and saw her on the oppositte side of the street a few hundered feet in front of him. 

He drove parallel to her path and called out to her, but she couldn't hear him. Tai decided to follow her home and give it to her there. "Might as well ask her about the pills then too."   
  


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He went up to the door of apartment 715, the door that he had seen her walk through only 15 minutes before. He rapped on the door, once, twice, three times. 

When no one came to the door, he rang the doorbell, once, twice. Still no one answered. 

He slowly put his hand on the sun-warmed doorknob. He turned it, quickly, and pushed the door open cautiously. He went in and said, "Mimi?" 

He heard a door open and then close. He turned and saw Mimi. She was clinging to a towel that was clinging to her thin wet body, water droplets were glistening on her light brown hair like a golden halo. 

"Tai... What are you doing here? How did you find me?" she asked, fear creeping into her voice, worry creasing her brow. 

He placed her book bag gently on the floor. "You left your book bag in the car..." He said, fumbling with the small bottle in his pocket. 

"Oh, well... Why don't you stay for dinner? Let me go and get dressed .. I'll be right out." She said, trying to force a smile. 

"Er... okay..." Tai said as Mimi turned around and went down some hall. He heard the door open and close again. 

He looked around the small apartment. There was an old chair in one 

corner of the room he was standing in, and a small couch in the middle of the room, facing a tiny window. 

The "family" room opened into a small kitchen with a small table with one chair sitting at it. 

He glanced towards the direction in which Mimi had left. He guessed that the hall led to a bathroom and a bedroom. 

"So, Tai, what can I get for ya? I'm not the best cook in the world, but I manage.." Mimi had come out of the bathroom, she was dressed in a pair of white cotton boxers that had smiley faces on them and an oversized t-shirt that had Korn's logo on it. 

"Uh... I"m not really that hungry... I just needed to talk to you about something." Tai replied slowly. 

Mimi looked at him and saw the pain in his eyes. She walked over to him, and put her arms around him. Realizing that he wasn't responding, she backed away cautiously and asked. 

"Tai, what's wrong? Please tell me what's bothering you!" 

"I'm hurting her. Might as well get it over with now, before it gets worse." He told himself. 

He pulled his hand out of his pocket, taking the small pill bottle with him, and slowly let his grip on it go. 

The pill bottle fell to the floor and bounced once before slowly rolling across the floor to Mimi. One by one she read the letters as they rolled towards her. M-i-f-e-p-r-i-s-t-o-n-e........ 

"Oh my god... he knows..." she thought, as she slowly slid down the wall 

to the floor, tears streaking her face pink. 

"Mind telling me why you have abortion drugs, Mimi?" Tai asked. "Why didn't you tell me you were pregnant?" He said, impatiently. 

Mimi just put her face in her hands and sobbed. "I...l....." She 

stammered. 

"I don't want an excuse Mimi...... To tell you honestly, I wouldn't have been mad at you! God damn it, Mimi, let me into your life!" 

Tai realized that he was hurting, not helping, so he shut up at that. He sat down next to her and put his arm around her comfortingly. "I'm sorry, Mims.... I didn't mean to yell like that, I just want to know what's going on......" He looked into her eyes, but she just turned her head away, her cheeks burning with 

shame. 

She turned back towards him, looking up into his pleading brown eyes. She gave into the large uniquely brown pools and sobbed into his shirt. He subconsciously pulled his fingers through her silky hair. 

"Well..... It all started when... I was going out with this guy that I really cared for. He was my world, and I thought that there was absolutely nothing that 

could happen to force us apart. One night, he took me out to dinner, like he always did and then we went to a movie. When he was driving me home, he took the long way and then pulled over his SUV and..... he....." Her voice drifted off as another 

fit of tears came on. 

"Shhh.... Mimi... it's okay... it's me...." Tai said comfortingly. He tilted her damp chin up towards him and looked into her puffy red eyes. He slowly kissed her tears away, one by one. "he... he raped me!!!!" Mimi cried, her voice quavering. 

She sobbed loudly, the tears coming faster now. She looked up at Tai, who had suddenly stopped rubbing her hair. 

He had a look of shock on his face. He quickly tried to cover up the surprise on his grief-stricken face , but he didn't do it too well. He slowly began fingering her hair again, so she continued, anger and sorrow filling her voice. 

"Well, no offense, but he, being like a guy, bragged to his friends that he "got 

some." They, in turn, told their friends, and somehow parents found out. They told my parents that I had "slept around." My mom and dad confronted me, and when I 

tried to tell them that I had been raped, they didn't believe me..... My mom made me get a pregnancy test, and when it turned positive, they... kicked me out....." 

"Why would they do such a thing?" Tai asked, anger tainting his voice. 

"I don't know...All I knew was that I was out on the street with no money, and no shelter... and I was carrying a baby.." Mimi replied sorrowfully. 

"When did all this happen?" Tai asked, inquisitive as always. 

"So that's why there's no one here....." he thought. 

"About two weeks ago....After they kicked me out, I decided to come back here... I found a job that paid decently, and the landlady of this place was generous to let me live here for fairly cheap...So.. now you know, Tai... " 

"I had no idea... I'm sorry, Mimi.... But why didn't you contact me sooner? You know I would've let you stay at my place." Tai had no idea what to say, he was so dumbfounded. 

"No, Taichi... it's just..... " Mimi's voice trailed off, not knowing what exactly to say. 

"Why are you trying to lose the baby?" Tai asked. 

"Because..... it'll remind me too much of what happened!! This baby is what screwed up my entire life!" Mimi yelled, her voice filled with angst. 

"Mimi, you don't understand what your doing! First there was the bulemia..." 

Mimi cut him off," You ... you knew about that?? But.. but how?" Her voice quavered a little. 

"I'm not THAT dense, Mimi, contray to popular belief.... I noticed the frequent trips to the restroom after eating something. Jeez, Mimi, you know that your body will do everything it possibly can to keep that baby alive! If you try to starve yourself, then your body will kill itself to support this." Tai placed his hand on Mimi's thin abdomen. 

"Tai, I know, I stopped because it wasn't working... That's why I got the mifepristone..." 

"Which you don't know the side effects of! What if you die because of it!" Tai cut in. 

"What if I die in childbirth, Tai? And even if I don't, I have NO way to support this baby... It will grow up without a father... Tai, I'm 16 years old... What will people think of me?" 

"They won't think anything, I won't let them..." Tai said sincerely. 

"Don't let an innocent child not have a chance to live.. I mean, Mimi, it's your choice, but.." Tai gulped for air. He knew that it wasn't the best way to lead his life, but... somehow, it was right... 

"Mimi, I'll support you, and your baby, if.. if you'll let me." 

"Tai, I couldn't put my burden on you... That would be wrong..." Mimi said. 

Tai leaned down and kissed her lightly on her forehead. "But I want to..."   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


Tai looked down at the sleeping form in his arms. So much had happened...He sighed slowly. He had held her in his arms while she sobbed, drenching his shirt, until she had fallen asleep. 

The light shone on her forehead, the source coming from somewhere behind her, making her long, thick eyelashes dapple little patterns on her now dry, but still tear-stained cheeks. 

He slowly picked her up gently, making sure she stayed asleep and began looking for her bedroom. 

He ventured through the small apartment, finding the bedroom quickly. He 

gently laid her down on her bed, and then sat down beside her, his back leaning against the rather uncomfortable wooden headboard. 

He studied her softened features until he fell asleep.   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


They awoke suddenly to a woman's sharp voice. 

"I don't believe you, Mimi! I come over here to forgive you, to take you back in, and I find you in bed with this... trash! You're back to your whorish ways again, I see. You can't talk your way out of this one, young lady..." Mimi looked at her mother with fresh tears in her eyes. 

" Mom.. you don't understand! Tai is a great guy who cares about me! He came over because he was worried about me!! Nothing happened, Mom! You have to believe me!" Mimi sobbed. 

Tai glared at Mimi's mother. How could she hurt his Mimi like that? Weren't mothers supposed to support their children no matter what? And who was she calling "trash" anyways? 

"Quit staring at me like that, young man. I suppose you're feeling pretty smug right now... You just got laid by my little girl..." Mrs. Tachikawa sneered. 

"Mrs. Tachikawa, Can I talk to you? Please, we really need to get some things cleared up..." Tai pleaded. 

Mimi's mom smirked. "Follow me." She turned on her heels and went out into the living room. 

Tai whispered to Mimi, "Don't worry, everything is going to be okay.." 

"Tai, she won't listen to you.. She doesn't listen to anyone but herself!" Mimi said quietly. 

"I made an A in Law..." Tai replied, before pecking Mimi on the forehead and following Mrs. Tachikawa. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


Tai slowly held out his hand, gulping with nervousness. "Hello, Mrs. Tachikawa, er..." He paused. He could feel the sweat trickling down the back of his neck. "I'm Taichi Kamiya." 

" I know who you are, Mr. star soccer player.." Mrs. Tachikawa sneered, her eyes narrowing. She looked him up and down slowly. 

"My, My... Mimi sure does pick handsome ones to lay with. I mean, first there was..." 

Tai cut her off. "Look, I didn't sleep with Mimi! I care about her, I respect her, and anyone," he shot Mrs. Tachikawa a glance, "and I mean ANYONE who tries to harm her or disrespect her, will have to go through me first." He said it so sincerely, that he could see in Mrs. Tachikawa's eyes that even she had been 

affected by his words. 

He went on. "You knew she was pregnant, why didn't you take her to a doctor? Did you know that she tried to starve herself to abortion? Did you know that that would have killed her had she realized that it wasn't working? I found mifepristone pills in her purse!" 

Mrs Tachikawa got a shocked expression on her face. She groped for a harsh word, a smooth comeback, but neither would come to mind. "That's right, Mrs. Tachikawa, one of the strongest abortion drugs ever created...( A/N- not really.. I'm just saying that for effect...Gomen- read on) ... Anyways, I convinced her not to take them..." 

Mrs. Tachikawa breathed a small sigh of relief. "...and she's going to keep the baby." Tai finished. 

His russet eyes were flashing wildly with triumph. He had won her over. 

"What? She's 16 years old!! She can't support a baby! She can barely support herself!" Mrs Tachikawa screamed at him. "My God, I don't believe you're letting her do this to herself!" 

"What I don't believe is how you'd deny an unborn child's chance to live! It doesn't matter what kind of evil that it was conceived in..." Tai yelled with a voice level equal to Mrs. Tachikawa's screech. He calmed down slightly, lowering his voice. " As for the money... I have decided that I'll support Mimi and her 

baby." 

"What? You're going to marry her? After she was....tainted?" 

"I plan to, yes. Not now, we're both too young, but I promise you this, if Mimi will have me, I will marry her once we are both finished with our schooling." 

Mimi's mother had a smile pulling at the corners of her puckered mouth. "Well... I can't deny you Mimi, if she means that much to you..." 

" So you'll let her back into your family?" Tai asked carefully. 

"For the time being, yes..." Mrs. Tachikawa looked at him auburn 

eyes twin to Mimi's. 

"Thank you, Mrs. Tachikawa." He paused, before sealing the deal with a compliment. "I can see where Mimi gets her beauty." 

"Flatterer..." Mimi's mother muttered, smiling slightly.   
  
  
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


Mimi had heard the conversation, and had tears shining in her eyes. She didn't believe what Tai had just done for her. She sighed a sigh of happiness. Life finally looked good... 

Her eyes perked as she heard her mother's now kind voice. "Mimi, I know that you're at the doorway..." 

Mimi ran out into the living room, into her mother's open arms. Tears ran down her face at the happy reunion. 

Tai stepped back from the two hugging women and smirked. He caught Mimi's eyes for a moment and sent her a look that plainly said, "I told you so...." 

He turned towards her and opened his arms. She broke the embrace with her mother and ran into Tai's open arms....   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


Well I just heard 

The news today 

Seems my life 

Is gonna change 

I close my eyes 

begin to pray 

And tears of joy.. 

Stream down my face 

With Arms wide open 

Under the sunlight 

Welcome to this place 

I'll show you anything 

With arms wide open 

Now everything has changed 

I'll show you love.. 

I'll show you anything 

With arms wide open   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


Sorry guys, no cliffhanger there... *sigh* this one was not nearly as good as part 1, in my opinion... But it wasn't THAT bad, was it?? (It wasn't as long, either ::hears claps in the background:: HEY!!!!! Only one part left to go *sniffle* I know y'all are sad!! ha.. yeah right... Send me your feedback and review PLEASE!!!!!! 

Email: Taichigrl@hotmail.com 

Webpage: http://welcome.to/everythingkamiya (It's a Tai shrine.. what else? lol) 

Luv y'all, 

Trin 


	3. Comedown

Title: Ship of Dreams 3: Comedown 

Author: Trinity ^^ 

Rating: PG-13 for language   
  


A/N: This is the last part *sniff sniff* and depending on how I write this, there may be an epilogue... but then again, there may not... heehee Anyways, this has a shocker ending, and you are welcome to take it any way that you want to, Just please don't flame me... I love hearing your opinions but... I honestly don't appreciate my work being looked down upon for opinions. I have my opinions, you have yours... I will write my story the way that I want to, and if there's a problem, 

I'm sure you're perfectly capable of writing a story yourself, the way that you want it written.... (Jeez... I'm gonna get flamed for my authors notes, ne? lol.). I don't want to come accross as mean or anything, it's just... people have asked me to rewrite my fics for them, and... *sigh* ohwell.... anyways I'm sure you're just DYING to read this now (not really but anyways) on with the ficcie!! 

Dedication: Angel.... She is the GREATEST writer (even if she does write taiora.....) but anyways, she is absolutely awesome.. I'm tellin ya!! her author name is "Angel" of course lol... now go read "Broken Glass, Broken Dreams" ~even you might like this one, Kate!~   
  


Song: Comedown by Bush   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


"Come on, Mimi, Push!!!!!!" Tai cried as he held Mimi's hand strongly. "Breathe! C'mon girl, in- out - in - out! I know you can do it!" 

"I don't know if I can do it, Tai!" Mimi squeezed her eyes tightly. 

"Great, couples! You did very well today! Coaches, remember to watch that video that I reccommended before you come back next week, okay? Class dismissed!" Corrie, the lamaze (A/N: It's "lamaze" I swear! I looked it up!!) coach said. 

Mimi and Tai burst out laughing. Tai helped the now very obviously pregnant Mimi up out of her sitting position. She looked down at herself and got a look of disgust on her face. 

"Ick... I don't believe how ugly maternity clothes are..." She said, smirking afterwards. 

"Now now, Mimi, I thought we gave up the vanity a looong time ago!" Tai smiled coyly at her before leaning over and giving her a hug and a kiss. "Now, we're going out to dinner!" He grabbed her hand and pulled her through the door and to the car. 

"Not like this, I'm not!!" Mimi cried in mock pain. 

"Yes you are! Our reservations are for..." he looked down at his watch. "Uh.. about 10 minutes ago." He gave the boyish smirk that Mimi loved so 

much. 

"What in the world am I going to do with you, Taichi Kamiya?" Tai just shrugged and gave her another smile.   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


Mimi opened her little white box of Hunan Chicken with white rice. She then opened the little red package of chop sticks and dug in, munching happily on the spicy dish. She was curled up on the old couch, and the two were watching reruns of "Ally McBeal." 

"See, this isn't that bad..." Tai said, emphasizing the "that" and popping some more Schezuan Shrimp into his mouth. 

"No, THIS isn't that bad, but running into the restaurant only to find that someone had taken our reservations was.." Her voice trailed off, but the smile on her face wasn't gone. 

They were curled up on oppositte ends of the couch, and were sharing a blanket, as it was winter and the heat in the small apartment wasn't working too well. 

"Just look at it this way.... the baby will be very... uh... Cultured!" Tai winked at her. 

"If you call take out Chinese cultural..." 

"Hey, I practically live off of this stuff!" Tai said defensively. 

"Oh.. so that's why..." Mimi said with a giggle, as if she had made an epiphany. 

Tai just threw a pillow at her, spilling some of his lo mein onto his lap. "Woohh... those are some hot noodles..." He said, furiously brushing the 

noodles off and getting up to discard them in the trashcan. He sighed. "Well, Mims, while I'm up.. Would you like anything? Some green tea?" 

"With honey, please.. And could you please make the caffinated kind? Pleeasse?" She looked up at him with large auburn bambi eyes. 

"No, I'm not letting anything happen to that baby." He winked at her, glancing at her swollen abdomen. "Say, it'll be 8 months tomorrow, right?" 

"Yep... Thank God... in a month I can get back to my old self. No more swollen ankles, no more large belly..." 

"... no more cravings in the middle of the night, no more mood swings..." Tai joked. 

It was Mimi's turn to throw the pillow at him.   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


Mimi woke up in the middle of the night to a sharp kick in her belly. An involuntary moan escaped her parted lips. She slowly got out of bed, pushing her hair out of her face. 

She noticed that she had broken into a cold sweat. Mimi slowly walked out to the kitchen, careful not to wake Tai, who was sleeping on the couch. She pulled a glass out of the cabinet and got the orange juice out of the fridge. 

While pouring her juice, a chill ran up her spine, making her fall back against the cabinets on the oppositte side of the kitchen. 

The glass fell to the floor with a clink.. clink... clink..... as it bounced. She immediately got the feeling that something was wrong.   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


Tai awoke to the sound of a glass dropping. His russet eyes flew open, and he glanced around warily. Seeing Mimi in the kitchen comforted him, but he got the horrible cold feeling in the pit of his stomach. The feeling, no, the knowing that something was wrong. 

He shed the blanket quickly and hurried into the kitchen. He saw Mimi clutching her stomach. Her face was twisted in pain, and he knew something was wrong. Not knowing what to do, he got Mimi her glass of OJ and hurried her out to his car. 

He flew to the hospital. He glanced at the glowing digits on his clock. They read: 3:45. Oh, how he wished he could somehow turn those glowing numbers off. 

They were just too bright. He glanced up at the overview mirror, looking at Mimi, who was curled up in the back seat. 

She kept moaning and muttering that "something was very wrong" and clutching her abdomen. He accelerated.   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


He pulled into the ER, raced inside the building and got a wheel chair for Mimi. 

He wheeled her into the ER quickly. She was now in a delusional state. She kept calling for her mother. He gulped as he ran up to the desk and told them what was going on. 

"Sir, you'll have to go to the Maternity ward for this." The bouncy young receptionist said, obviously annoyed. 

"You don't understand..." He glanced at her nametag. "Reena..." He pointed at Mimi, who was still moaning incoherently. "Mimi, my.. Well, she's in labor, and she's only 16 years old and... and... I don't know what to do! It's too early...." Tai stammered... He was too nervous to say anything. 

Reena looked at the shivering Mimi. Her eyes widened for a second, and then she picked up the P/A phone. "Hello?? We have a code.. er... we have a woman in labor here! I need the OBGYN right now, floor one - waiting area." She looked back at Tai. "They'll be down in a second." 

As soon as she had said that, the OBGYNs appeared, as if out of nowhere. Or, at least, to Tai they did. Saviors, coming through the automatic glass doors like angels. 

They grabbed Mimi's wheelchair and ran it carefully through some doors and down a few white, sterilized halls, Tai following at their heels the whole time.   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


Mimi woke up to Tai's worried, pain filled face. Upon seeing her, his eyes brightened and a smile pulled at the corners of his mouth. She stared up at him, and thought, no.. knew that he was the most beautiful thing one could see in the cold operating room. 

She gave his hand a squeeze. God knows how tightly he was holding her hand, and she thought that she would be the one dealing the pain to his fingers. 

Poor Tai, this was putting so much stress on him. But, her thoughts of Tai quickly vanished as the first contractions came. 

He looked down at her sweat streaked face. Her eyes were squeezed shut in concentration. Her hair was plastered to her flushed face. He reached over and got the dampened washcloth and patted her forehead with it. 

She relaxed slightly when the cold compress touched her forehead. Tai thought that she was the most beautiful like this. He held her hand and slowly coached her breathing. 

He whispered in her ear, "I know you can do this, Mimi, because I love you..." A faint smile quickly appeared on her lips, and then disappeared as another contraction hit. 

"I don't know about this, Lys...Her hips are too narrow..." 

"Shut up, Steph , she has to make it, although it doesn't look likely.." 

Mimi heard the two OBGYNs conversing about her, as if she wasn't even there. "Hah.. I'll show them... Mimi Tachikawa does NOT give up that easily..." 

She forced herself to push harder. An animal-like cry escaped her chapped lips. "Tai.... ice... chips.." She rasped. Tai slipped the chips between her parted lips, and held her head up so she wouldn't choke. 

"Wait a minute, ... I think I see the head!! C'mon Mimi, one more BIG push..." Dr. Summers said. 

Mimi pushed as if she'd never done before...Then, the release. Her muscles instantaneously and simultaneously relaxed, and she fell into a deep sleep. She didn't hear the cries of, 'It's a boy!'   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


Tai looked down at the small spent form that was curled in a ball next to him. Mimi started shivering, so he went to the cabinet and got her another blanket. 

Her eyes flitted open, and she smiled up at him. He smiled warmly back at her. He was so proud of her, he couldn't begin to imagine what kind of pain she had been in. 

This was the girl... no, woman that he knew he was going to spend the rest of his life with. She would need to be pampered. He smiled again at the thought. 

Dr. Summers came in holding the baby in a light blue cloth. She went over and handed the sleeping baby to Tai. 

Mimi's eyes brightened when she saw it. She had wanted a boy, not that a girl wouldn't have been perfect too. She must mention more kids to Tai... "Thank you so much, Dr. Summers!" Mimi said sincerely. 

"Please, call me Lys.. and be sure to come and visit me with little...." Lys's voice trailed off. She wasn't sure what the young couple was to name their child yet. 

Mimi thought for a moment, then gazed up at Tai, who was cradling and rocking the newborn boy. "Taichi..... Taichi Kamiya jr." She smiled at Tai, who had a look of happy shock on his face. 

"She's going to name the baby after me....." Tai thought with realization as his broadest smile crossed his lips. He stared down at the little boy. He was... so... frail, so delicate. 

"You know, you're very lucky people. Babies born prematurely aren't usually that healthy." Dr. Summers said. 

Suddenly, the baby opened it's eyes. Tai looked down at the blinking baby and his eyes widened in shock. His eyes darted over to Mimi, who was looking at him in concern. He handed the baby to her. 

She cradled the baby softly. She looked up at the shocked Tai and nodded slightly, hurt in her eyes. 

The baby's eyes were a shockingly azure blue.   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


Tai looked down at the beautiful baby boy that was snuggled in Mimi's arms, who was wrapped up in his arms. He sighed before smiling and saying, "Mimi, I want to stay like this forever.." 

"Me too, Taichi-kun, me too..." Mimi looked up and kissed him. She had never been this happy before. 

Suddenly, Taichi jr. reached up with his little chubby fist and grabbed Tai's finger, squeezing it tightly. For a minute or two, Tai's face shown with pride. No matter what anyone said, this was his son.   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


'Cause I don't want to come down from this cloud 

It's taken me all this time to find out what I've needed... 

It's taken me all this all this 

all this 

time.....   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
  


A/N: Well, dat be da ending ^^... I'm sorry 'bout the ending guys.... *whistles to self* .. You're welcome to take it annnyy way that you want to.... I didn't say it was anyone we know and love!!!!!! *gets down on knees and pleads* please don't flame me!!! Hope ya liked it...Send me .... feedback!!!!!! 

Taichigrl@hotmail.com 

AIM name: Trinity715 

homepage: http://welcome.to/everythingkamiya 


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